2011 Hyundai Equus: Dyno Tested

This is the US-specification 2011 Hyundai Equus. A rare bird, indeed, which is why we made haste in strapping it down to a Dynojet chassis dyno and making it sing when we had the chance.

The 2011 Equus' 4.6-liter Tau V8 was plucked intact from the Genesis. This all-aluminum V8 sports 32-valves and dual cam phasing. Whether in the Equus or Genesis, the Tau V8 delivers 385 horsepower at 6500 rpm and 333 lb-ft of torque at 3500 rpm on premium fuel (these numbers drop by 7 and 9, respectively, on regular).

We tested on 91 octane, as always, which is technically "premium" fuel here in California. In reality 91 is a crummy alternative to the real-deal 93 and 94 octane available elsewhere in the States. Whether 91 octane has any adverse effect on the Equus' ultimate power is anyone's guess.

As measured at the wheels, peak power of 321 horsepower arrived right before the Equus upshifted at 6,700 rpm. Peak torque of 291 lb-ft came at 4,950 rpm. This is a far cry from the 3500 rpm at which Hyundai pegs peak torque, and it's possible that if we were able to start the dyno pull from lower engine speeds we would have captured this true peak lower in the rev range.

Like most cars equipped with an automatic transmission, the Equus wanted to downshift when we layed into the throttle on the dyno. This would happen even when the transmission's manual gate was selected. Fourth gear was even more kickdown-happy than third, depriving us of a few hundred rpm at the start of the data, so we resorted to using third gear for the result you see above.

That little dip in the torque curve at 4,800 rpm was repeatable run after run. Speaking of repeatable, the Equus was among the most consistent cars on the dyno that I can remember -- the last few runs were all within a few tenths of a horsepower.

One surprise is how good the Equus' V8 sounded on the dyno as it tore through its rev range. It's a kind of restrained aggression, like silk tearing while submerged in a bucket of full-fat milk.

For those whom want more pop, Hyundai will introduce a 429-hp direct-injected 5.0-liter version of the Tau V8 for the Equus once it has been in the US for a year. For now, though, the 4.6 will suffice. We'll have complete driving impressions and such on the 2011 Equus in the coming days.